Farmers Rally to Form HSUS Alabama Agriculture Advisory Council

Albertville, Alabama – The Humane Society of the United States will announce the formation of the Alabama Agricultural Advisory Council this evening at Buttram Farms in Albertville. The event will be held with farmers who embrace more humane and sustainable animal husbandry practices, and who are working to bring fairness for family farmers back to the food commodity marketplace. The Council will serve to promote independent Alabama family farmers who reject the factory farm model and who are the foundation of economic vibrancy in the state’s rural communities. The Alabama council will be the thirteenth such group formed by The HSUS, joining states as diverse as North Carolina, Iowa, Oklahoma, and Missouri.

“The HSUS welcomes these authentic Alabama farmers to the HSUS family as we work to combat the scourge of industrial factory farming,” said Marty Irby, Senior Advisor at The HSUS, and himself an Alabama native. “These farmers work hard every day to promote more humane and sustainable agriculture in the state and for the sake of consumers, producers, and animals, work with gusto to bring the negative consequences of CAFOs to an end.”

“We are proud to join The HSUS in promoting more humane and sustainable agriculture, fighting for family farmers, higher farm animal welfare standards, and advancing legislation to curb Big Ag’s heavy-handed influence over our democracy,” said Jonathan Buttram, the president of the Alabama Contract Poultry Growers Association, and founding member of the HSUS council. The Great State of Alabama stands strong and proud in our beliefs, and way of life, and we want to ensure that future generations are able to farm on the same land that’s been in our family for decades.”

The Humane Society of the United States collaborates with farmers and ranchers who embrace strong standards of care for animals on the farm. The agriculture advisory councils provide family farmers with an amplified voice to resist policies and programs that promote the industrial animal agriculture model, such as the federal checkoff programs and state laws to shield factory farms from transparency and oversight. Under the guidance of Senior Advisor, Marty Irby, and Rural Affairs Director Scott Beckstead, The HSUS Rural Affairs team partners with farmers who share our passion for high standards of animal welfare—for the sake of animals, family farmers, the land, and local communities.